The Home Stretch -- Academy Award Hopefuls Are Finally Coming To Local Screens As Nomination Time Nears

It's catch-up time this month for Seattle movie audiences, who will finally get a peek at several 1992 performances that have been mentioned in year-end critics' awards and are likely to be in the running for Academy Awards nominations next month.

Robert Downey Jr.'s extraordinary impersonation of Charles Chaplin is the most memorable aspect of Richard Attenborough's 2 1/2-hour biography, "Chaplin," which opens Friday. In George Miller's moving and equally lengthy "Lorenzo's Oil," which arrives Jan. 22, Susan Sarandon plays a mother who becomes fanatically attached to a child who has been diagnosed as terminally ill.

Last month, Downey came close to winning the National Board of Review's best-actor award, which ultimately went to Jack Lemmon for "Glengarry Glen Ross." In the New York Film Critics' Circle awards, Sarandon was the only close runner-up to Emma Thompson ("Howards End") for best actress.

The same group named Denzel Washington best actor for "Malcolm X," although his closest competition came from Harvey Keitel for his work as a corrupt police officer in Abel Ferrara's "Bad Lieutenant," which will be here Jan. 29. The Los Angeles Film Critics' Association also chose Thompson for best actress, but the chief runner-up there was Alfre Woodard for her work as an aggressive maid in John Sayles' "Passion Fish," which is due Jan. 29.

Among the other 1992 holdovers on the 1993 schedule are "Laws of Gravity," "Ethan Frome," "Rich in Love," "My New Gun," "Afraid of the Dark" and "Love Field," which is being promoted in hopes of picking up an Oscar nomination for Michelle Pfeiffer.

Most of these delays have to do with positioning late-1992 releases so they can benefit from free promotion if they happen to be nominated for Golden Globes or Academy Awards. There are also several bona fide 1993 releases on the list. Here's a roundup:

OPENING WEDNESDAY

"Afraid of the Dark." Mark Peploe, one of the Oscar-winning screenwriters of "The Last Emperor," makes his directing debut with this psychological thriller about a boy who fears he will go blind.

FRIDAY

"Chaplin." In addition to Downey as Chaplin, the cast includes Kevin Kline as Douglas Fairbanks Sr., Dan Aykroyd as Mack Sennett, Penelope Ann Miller as Edna Purviance, Maria Pitillo as Mary Pickford, Kevin Dunn as J. Edgar Hoover, Diane Lane as Paulette Goddard, and Geraldine Chaplin as her own grandmother.

JAN. 12

"Blast 'Em. . . Pray You're Not Famous." A feature-length Canadian documentary about New York photographers who prey on celebrities.

JAN. 15

"Lorenzo's Oil." This family drama co-starring Sarandon, Nick Nolte and Peter Ustinov kicks off what has become the first big three-day movie-going weekend of the year: Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday.

"Alive." Delayed from last fall, Disney's version of the 1974 bestseller about a South American plane crash, reportedly plays down the fact that the survivors were forced to resort to cannibalism. It was directed by Frank Marshall ("Arachnophobia") and stars Ethan Hawke.

"Laws of Gravity." Nick Gomez directed this low-budget Brooklyn mean-streets drama about two young criminals and their girlfriends.

"Body of Evidence." The latest controversial Madonna vehicle, partly filmed in Olympia last spring and originally rated NC-17. Co-starring Willem Dafoe and Joe Mantegna, it's a "Basic Instinct" wannabe (now rated R) about a woman on trial for murder.

"Nowhere to Run." Jean-Claude Van Damme's latest attempt to upgrade his action-movie image co-stars Rosanna Arquette and Macaulay Culkin's brother, Kieran. The script is by Joe Eszterhas, who wrote "Basic Instinct" and "Jagged Edge."

"Van Gogh." Maurice Pialat's three-hour film about the painter concentrates on the last two months of his life. Jacques Dutronc plays Vincent.

JAN. 22

"Damage." Louis Malle's superbly acted adaptation of the Josephine Hart novel about an aging politician (Jeremy Irons) who has an affair with the girlfriend (Juliette Binoche) of his son (Rupert Graves). For her performances in this film and "Enchanted April" and "The Crying Game," Miranda Richardson won the New York Film Critics' award for best supporting actress.

"Ethan Frome." British director John Madden's adaptation of Edith Wharton's romantic novel, starring Liam Neeson, Patricia Arquette and Katharine Houghton.

"Jersey Girl." Dylan McDermott and Jami Gertz co-star in this romantic comedy about a New Jersey girl pursuing a rich Manhattan man.

"Love Field." An interracial love story about Texas in November 1963, with Michelle Pfeiffer as a divorcee obsessed with Jacqueline Kennedy.

"Aspen Extreme." Skiing film about two young Michigan men who decide to become ski instructors in Colorado.

"Hexed." Delayed from last fall, this comedy-thriller stars Arye Gross as a hotel clerk with a vivid imagination.

"Knight Moves." Psychological drama starring Christopher Lambert as a chess champion who may be a serial killer. With Diane Lane, Tom Skerritt, Daniel Baldwin.

JAN. 27

"Cage/Cunningham." A feature-length 1992 documentary about composer John Cage and choreographer Merce Cunningham.

JAN. 29

"The Ox." Sven Nykvist directed this 19th century Swedish drama starring Max Von Sydow, Liv Ullmann, Erland Josephson and Ewa Froling. It was one of five movies that received Oscar nominations for best foreign film last year.

"My New Gun." Wry feminist black comedy, first shown at last year's Seattle International Film Festival and starring Diane Lane as an oppressed housewife whose husband (Stephen Collins) lives to regret his decision to buy a gun for her.

"Unforgiven." Last summer's Clint Eastwood western will be reissued in 700-800 theaters, following its landslide victory in the Los Angeles Film Critics' awards (best picture, actor, director, script, supporting actor) and in anticipation of multiple Oscar nominations.

"Bad Lieutenant." "King of New York" director Abel Ferrara's latest crime drama has won acclaim for Harvey Keitel's raw performance in the title role.

"Venice/Venice." The latest semi-autobiographical movie from writer-director-actor Henry Jaglom, who had an art-house hit two years ago with "Eating." Nelly Alard, who starred in that film, this time plays a French journalist attending the Venice Film Festival.

"Matinee." The latest project from Joe Dante ("Gremlins," "The Howling") concerns the Cuban Missile Crisis and an exploitation filmmaker played by John Goodman.

"Passion Fish." Writer-director John Sayles' first film since "City of Hope" reunites two of the cast members of "Grand Canyon," Mary McDonnell and Alfre Woodard. Sayles veteran David Strathairn plays the married man McDonnell loves.

FEB. 3

"Next of Kin." It's available on videotape, but this marks the first local theatrical screening of Canadian director Atom Egoyan's debut movie: an hour-long tale of a young man who decides to switch families.

FEB. 5

"The Cemetery Club." Disney comedy about three suddenly single middle-aged women (Ellen Burstyn, Olympia Dukakis, Diane Ladd) adjusting to their new status as widows.

"Sommersby." Jodie Foster and Richard Gere co-star in a remake of one of Gerard Depardieu's most popular French films, "The Return of Martin Guerre." Nicholas Meyer wrote the script, and the director is Jon Amiel ("The Singing Detective").

"The Vanishing." Made-in-Seattle remake of a terrific and quite fatalistic Dutch thriller, starring Jeff Bridges and Kiefer Sutherland and featuring an upbeat new ending.

"Mac." John Turturro, best-known for playing the title character in "Barton Fink," turned director with this picture and won last year's Cannes Film Festival prize for best first film.

FEB. 7

"Deadly Currents." Canadian documentary about the founding of Israel and continuing Arab-Jewish conflicts.

FEB. 11

"Neo-Tokyo" and "Silent Mobius." A double bill of hour-long Japanese animated films. The former is a collection of three science-fiction stories. The latter is an adaptation of a Japanese graphic novel about a special police force of the distant future.

MID-FEBRUARY

"The Temp." Timothy Hutton stars and Faye Dunaway has a featured role in this corporate-jungle thriller, directed by Tom Holland ("Fright Night").

"Into the West." Chosen as the opening-night attraction at the Sundance Film Festival later this month, this Irish-American co-production stars Gabriel Byrne and Ellen Barkin. It was written by Jim Sheridan ("My Left Foot") and directed by Mike Newell ("Enchanted April").

"Homeward Bound. . . The Incredible Journey." Originally scheduled for release a full year ago, Disney's remake of its own 1963 classic, "The Incredible Journey," again tells the story of two dogs and a cat who take the long way home. The human cast includes Robert Hays and Jean Smart.

"Army of Darkness." Also known as "Evil Dead III," Sam Raimi's long-delayed sequel stars series veteran Bruce Campbell.

"Ground Hog Day." Bill Murray plays a small-town Pennsylvania television weatherman in the first comedy to celebrate this February landmark.

"Olivier, Olivier." A new film from Agnieszka Holland, the Oscar-nominated writer-director of "Europa, Europa." This one concerns a couple's search for their son in northern France.

"Volere, Volare." Italian comedy from the creators of "The Icicle Thief," about a shy sound-effects man who meets a prostitute.

"Stolen Children." A likely contender in this year's foreign-film Academy Awards sweepstakes, this popular Italian film could make it three in a row for Italy, which won the Oscar last year for "Mediterraneo" and the year before for "Cinema Paradiso."

"El Mariachi." Spanish-language feature about mistaken identity. It was made for $7,000 by a young filmmaker, Robert Rodriguez, who has already been signed up to remake it for Columbia Pictures.

"Wiping the Tears of Seven Generations" and "Contrary Warriors." Documentary double bill of films about Native American struggles.

LATE FEBRUARY

"Rich in Love." Shown at the Vancouver International Film Festival last fall, this story of a chaotic household reunites the team that made "Driving Miss Daisy": director Bruce Beresford, screenwriter Alfred Uhry and producers Richard and Lili Fini Zanuck. The cast includes Albert Finney, Jill Clayburgh, Kyle MacLachlan, Piper Laurie, Ethan Hawke and Alfre Woodard.

"Damned in the USA." British made-for-television documentary about the right-wing religious opposition to government subsidies for the arts.

"Swing Kids." Disney's long-delayed tale of a youthful resistance movement in 1939 Germany, starring Christian Bale ("Newsies"), Robert Sean Leonard ("Dead Poets Society") and Frank Whaley ("Hoffa").

"Jack the Bear." Long-delayed Danny De Vito vehicle.

"Like Water For Chocolate." Mexico's much-praised entry in this year's foreign-film Oscar race, based on a best-selling novel about a turn-of-the-century romance on the Texas border.

"Strictly Ballroom." Australian film-festival smash about a young dancer who upsets the status quo with his new moves.

"Riff Raff." Ken Loach's flavorful comedy about a young London construction worker and his would-be-singer girlfriend. One of the high points of last year's Seattle International Film Festival.

EARLY MARCH

"Mad Dog and Glory." Long-delayed gangster movie with impressive credentials: screenwriter Richard Price ("Sea of Love"), director John McNaughton ("Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer"), producer Martin Scorsese. The cast includes Robert De Niro, Uma Thurman and Bill Murray.

"Map of the Human Heart." The latest film from Vincent Ward, the New Zealand director of "Vigil" and "The Navigator," who made a fruitless detour through Hollywood to work on "Alien 3."

"So I Married an Axe Murderer." The first solo comedy from Mike Myers, the Wayne of "Wayne's World."

"The Last Days of Chez Nous." A new Australian film from director Gillian Armstrong, who made two of Judy Davis' best pictures, "My Brilliant Career" and "High Tide." This urban drama about the strains of a cross-cultural marriage stars Bruno Ganz, Kerry Fox and Lisa Harrow, who won an Australian Oscar for her work.

"Thumbelina." Feature-length animated fantasy from MGM.

"Friday the 13th, Part 9: Jason Goes to Hell." Just when you thought Jason's 1989 trip to New York marked the end of the series, producer Sean S. Cunningham is back with another installment. Kane Hodder stars.

"Fire in the Sky." Robert Lieberman's fantasy about a man who is abducted by aliens in Arizona.

MID-MARCH

"Born Yesterday." Melanie Griffith takes over the role that won Judy Holliday an Academy Award 42 years ago in this remake of the long-running stage hit. Don Johnson and John Goodman co-star.

"Leolo." Prize-winning Canadian tale of a young daydreamer who is the youngest boy in a large, suffocating family. Nominated for nine Genie awards (the Canadian Oscars), it's Canada's French-language entry in this year's Oscar race for best foreign film.

"Teenage Mutant Turtles 3." Filmed in Astoria last year, the latest installment again stars Paige Ruco as the reporter heroine, now a time-traveler who goes back to 17th century Japan, where she is captured by a merciless warlord.

"Bodies, Rest and Motion." Michael Steinberg, who co-directed "The Waterdance" with Neal Jimenez, goes solo with this comedy-drama about 48 hours in the lives of four people, played by Bridget Fonda, Tim Roth, Eric Stoltz and Phoebe Cates.

"Meteor Man." Robert Townsend's inner-city fable, starring Bill Cosby, Robert Guilliaume, Frank Gorshin and James Earl Jones.

"The Secret Garden." A new adaptation of the Frances Hodgson Burnett children's classic, starring Maggie Smith and directed by Agnieszka Holland.